Venice Film Market to launch co-production market in 2014

As the Venice Film Market seeks to establish itself as a key autumn networking event for European professionals, market head Pascal Diot has revealed plans for a coproduction market at next year’s event.

Diot has also unveiled details of a raft of new initiatives aimed at strengthening this year’s Venice Film Market, now in its second year, which has 1,600 accredited professionals attending.

There are now dedicated market screenings, which include market premieres of titles not in official selection at the Venice Film Festival. Titles screening include Alexandros Avranas’ competition entry Miss Violence, sold by Elle Driver, and Eastern Boys, sold by Films Distribution.

Diot has also launched “Final Cut In Venice”, a new venture through which works in progress of new films in post-production are shown. There will also be Q&A’s with the directors of the films. Titles include Ibrahim El-Batout’s The Cat and Kaouther Ben Hania’s Challatt Of Tunis. Backers, among them the CNC and Titra TVS, have pledged money toward the completion of the projects.

Among the titles being given Promo Reel special screenings are Juno Mak’s horror movie Rigor Mortis and Tobe Hooper’s Djinn, both sold by Fortissimo; Sydney Sibila’s comedy Chemical Mates, sold by Fandango; Ivan Gergolet’s documentary Dancing With Maria, sold by Transmedia; and Alexander Mitta’s art drama Chagall-Malevich, sold by Intercinema.

The market also has its own new app, VFM Platform.

The exhibition area is primarily given over to film commissions as well as national and public bodies.

“I will never compete with Cannes or Berlin,” said Diot. “I won’t have 30 or 40 screening rooms, thousands of stands and so on. That is not the purpose here, even if we are exdpanding. What I would like is [for the market] really to be a networking place.”

Diot pointed to the success the Match Factory enjoyed with Wadjda last year as evidence that Venice is still a place to launch new films.

“This is the second year. Our aim, of course, is to expand the market,” added Diot.

Subscribe to Screen International

Screen International is the essential resource for the international film industry. Subscribe now for monthly editions, awards season weeklies, access to the Screen International archive and supplements including Stars of Tomorrow and World of Locations.